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Tag: fashion

Chair Socks: When You Absolutely Must Buy More Stuff

November 10, 2010 /

Apparently, the urge to live your life with style has come to this: socks for your chairs.

This may not be new, but it’s new to me.  It can’t really be called “conspicuous consumption,” because you don’t carry your chairs on your arm like you might a $1,000 purse.  I’ll call it “ridiculous consumption.”

I’m good with style.  I’m good with design.  I’m good with new ideas.  I’m good with entrepreneurs – they’re our best bet for an economically better tomorrow.

I’m not so good with the perishable, fleeting and often silly nature of fashion.  I’m terrible with having to buy more stuff so badly that you’d pull out a credit card for socks … for your chairs.

Chris and Ruby, Chris & Ruby, Chair Socks, socks for your chair

Socks: What You and Your Chairs Never Knew They Never Needed (Photo: Dwell.com)

I did buy a pack of pads for the bottom of some of my chairs for $5 at Bed Bath and Beyond; they prevent my chairs from scratching the floor.

I did not buy a set of four chair socks from Dwell.com for $20.  At that price, socking up your dining room would cost $80-160, depending how many you seat.

If you absolutely must spend money, please consider other options, because there are people who live within a 5 mile radius of your home that need socks more than your chairs do.

Here in Colorado Springs, the Colorado Springs Independent’s IndyGive! campaign just fired back up – colorful, fun, incentivized and wonderful.  Later this month, the Gazette-El Pomar Empty Stocking Fund campaign begins again; this campaign is run in several other cities, too.  Both benefit a wide variety of non-profits on all kinds of missions to make life better for all of us here in the Pikes Peak region.

About what do you care?  How can you improve your own life by improving others’ lives?  Is there a person, organization or idea you appreciate that could use a little boost?

Most of us buy things we don’t really need, but instead simply want.  That’s OK.  But I’m drawing the line at chair socks.

ForbesLife: Bridal Magazine for the Super-Rich

September 23, 2010 /

I like holding reading material in my hands and turning pages as I read.  I like folding a corner or tucking in a piece of paper to mark where I left off before setting it down.  As regards reading, I like not ever having to plug in, power up or power down.  I like books and magazines in physical form.  All that said, I also read a ton online, but that’s beside the point.

One of the magazines I enjoy reading when it arrives in my mailbox by way of the USPS is Forbes.  Occasionally, the magazine is supplemented by the obscenely rich ForbesLife, positioned as “Celebrating the Best of the Best.”  I’ve never seen a publication stuffed with more ads for watches that cost more than my car.

Speaking of being stuffed with ads, here’s the primary observation of this post: ForbesLife is stuffed with ads of all kinds.  Jammed.  Loaded.  Choked.  With advertising.

luxury, watch, Cartier, wristwatch, time piece

The Calibre de Cartier 1904 MC is advertised opposite the table of contents and is priced starting as low as $6,500.

One thing I like to do when a new magazine arrives at my home is to pull out all the postcard-sized, heavy stock inserts.  With the latest ForbesLife, though, I decided to pull out every page with advertising on both sides.  Just for fun and of curiosity.  The issue to which I refer is the 20th Anniversary issue, dated September 2010.

I pulled out 14 pages (28 single-sided pages).  That included a couple multi-page “advertorial” sections for Marquis Jet and for Charleston, South Carolina.

That left just 35 pages.  Of those remaining, 20 had advertising on one of the two sides.

In this tabulation, I was gracious enough to except the “Down Time, For Fall: Effortless Dress-Down Chic” photo spread from the advertising counts, despite the fact that every clothing item is brand-named and priced.  For your reference, I’ll run down item and price on one of those pages (randomly selected): $11,390 wool coat, $535 cotton shirt, $790 jeans and $70 belt.

To summarize: 49 total double-sided pages, 98 total sides, 48 sides with advertising.

That’s a fat lot of ads!  More than 50% the printed piece is advertising.

Bottom line: ForbesLife is a bridal or high fashion magazine for the super-rich.  In bridal and fashion mags, the advertising plays an important, functional role as content.

Beyond the obvious role of revenue-provider to the privately held media company Forbes, Inc., the ads are critical element of the publication for the reader.  The advertising in this type of magazine complements the content proper, provides supporting images and information and casts upon the reader a sought-after sense.

In the case of ForbesLife, it’s a sense of opulence.

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